Imagine this: you’re strolling through the Botanical Garden, and instead of making a boring “here I am in front of flowers” Instagram post, you become a plant expert. A modern herbalist! Your grandma would be proud!
Via Ventura is an app that enables this by offering guided tours through the Garden. Here you will find an oak older than your aunt’s wedding. The app tells you: “This oak has survived four wars, one fire, and two floods.” And then follows up with a question: “How long does an average oak live?” Guess right by observing the surroundings and you earn the “Golden Acorn” for your collection. People collect stamps; you collect acorns – cool, right?
Next stop - Ginkgo tree. Quiz: “What are the benefits of Ginkgo for memory and focus?” If you know, you earn the “Ginkgo Leaf” – a plant item that grants wisdom! At the end of the tour, pour “Golden Acorn” and “Ginkgo Leaf” and some more plants into the virtual cauldron, mix – and make the “Elixir of Intelligence”. You’re ready for the next level of botanical magic.
With every walk and quiz, you gain new knowledge and collect items for your cauldron. Culture, nature, fun, and digital magic – all in one place. What are you waiting for? Download the Via Ventura app and experience familiar places in a new light!
Students: Filip Đokić, Strahinja Banjanac, Marko Radetić, Miloš Milutinović, Uroš Jevtić, Nedeljko Babić, Jelena Blanuša, Nevena Gligorov, Luka Savkov, Leopolidina Đanić, Jovan Jokić, Aleksa Đukić, Jovan Šarac, Marina Kićanović, Jovan Katanić, Ana Ranić, Marko Bošković
Teachers: Dr. Nikola Luburić, Docent, Luka Dorić, Assistant
Acknowledgments: Milica Siriški, Julija Jelićanin, Danijel Radaković, Prof. Dr. Branko Milosavljević
At the Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, there is a study programme in Computer Science and Automation. Senior students choose specialisations, one of which is dedicated to software engineering. As part of this specialisation, there is a course called "Software Design," where students spend three months developing an application in teams of 16 members while working with the end users of the app to identify their problems and needs. Students face a variety of technical and non-technical challenges, with the main one being to understand the needs of diverse users and organise the implementation of useful software in a large team. Throughout this process, students enhance their professional competence, as well as their ability to understand clients and colleagues, and to elevate other team members, thus improving the collective itself.
In the 2023/24 academic year, the project's domain was tourism, focusing on guided tours. From the project assignment of the best student team emerged the Via Ventura app, which supports the art+science programme. The project team consists of 17 students who, through a project assignment at the faculty, designed the app and then developed it into the version that allows us to play while exploring the Botanical Garden Jevremovac. The team was mentored throughout the process by the course instructors, Nikola Luburić and Luka Dorić.
